On the Origin of the Indian Brahma Alphabet c5.125

c5.125

Finally there are explicit statements in Chinese Buddhist works, discovered and kindly communicated to me by M. Sylvain Lévi, according to which the signs for the four liquid vowels were invented either by Nāgārjuna or by Śarvavarman, the minister of Sātavāhana. This tradition points at all events to the conclusion that even in later times the Hindus were aware of the fact that the ancient Brāhma alphabet contained only twelve vowel signs.